From the time the referral reaches our office to completion varies depending on the type of adoption. A stepparent adoption can take from six weeks to six months depending on the timeliness of paperwork and references returned.

A newborn or relative adoption usually takes several months to complete. That process is more extensive and requires more paperwork, a home visit and longer interviews.

Many families complete their relative or stepparent adoptions without the assistance of an attorney. Those cases have the cooperation and consent of the relinquishing parents. The legal forms are available at the Pierce County Law Library and can be copied and purchased there. Acting without an attorney means that you are representing yourself and are responsible for completing and filing your own paperwork.

If an adoption involves a birth parent whose whereabouts are unknown or is uncooperative, an adoption attorney is strongly recommended. While these cases are not impossible, they are more complicated legally and require very specific legal notices to be served or published in the newspaper. Pierce County Adoptions staff is not able to give legal advice.

For every adoption there is a $260 filing fee at the Clerk’s Office. Each report has a different fee: Stepparent reports are $300; Relative reports are $550. During the report process, there are small fees for criminal background checks, and on the date of finalization, there will be fees for the new birth certificate and certified copies of the adoption decree.

If you are representing yourself, you will pay for your legal paperwork either through a paralegal office, or copies from the Law Library. JAG does legal paperwork for military families, for uncontested step parent adoptions, at no charge.

If you hire an adoption attorney, those fees will vary slightly depending on the attorney. The same fees outlined above will still apply in addition to attorney fees.

All children participate in the adoption process. They come to the family interview and are required to be present in court. Children with verbal skills usually have an understanding of their own adoption. School-aged children will be part of the interview process.

Both parents and the child (adoptee) are required to be present in court. The court is aware that this is a special event for families and, therefore, allows extended family and friends to be present for the adoption. Cameras and video are also allowed throughout the adoption hearing.

You must notify the birth father even if his identity is unknown, not listed or has been absent for many years. The father’s parental rights are terminated in one of three ways: 1) He can sign a Consent if he agrees with the adoption, 2) He can be served with notice of a court hearing to terminate his parental rights, or 3) A publication notice can be run in the newspaper announcing the termination of his parental rights at a court hearing. The court prefers that a Consent be obtained, but if that is not possible, the court can grant a court order allowing service or publication before those processes are completed.